Bastian turned to face Silas. His eyes practically screamed, “Please have a good reason for acting like such an idiot.”
Silas shrugged. “I couldn’t help myself?”
Finn shook his head. “Of course you couldn’t. Just like you couldn’t help leaving us for tons of money to play for the Wolves. I don’t know why Greg let you sign on with the Storm again.”
Silas almost laughed. Wasn’t it obvious? It was because Greg was as competitive as he was. The general manager wanted to win. As arrogant as it sounded, Silas knew that he was the missing puzzle piece for that dream. He couldn’t single handedly win a season, but he would bring something to the Storm that was missing.
Silas opened his mouth to respond, but Coach walked into the group. “Alright, guys, break’s over. Let’s get out there and work on agility.”
Silas sighed. The mess with Miriam would now make it twice as hard to get the team to trust him again. Had it been worth it to have her in his arms again, even for just a second?
The scent of jasmine lingering in the air made his heart scream a big, fat “yes.”
He shook his head. What’s done was done. He could only choose to do better, not change the past. Time to do what he always did—put his whole self into the game and show everyone why he was here.
Miriam
As awkward as that surprise hug from Silas had been, it wasn’t nearly as awkward as the drive back to the office with Harris.
He’d asked if she was okay no less than ten times, refusing to believe her reassurances that she was fine. Maybe it was the tears that lingered in her eyes without actually falling that tipped Harris off to the fact that she was lying, but she was not about to talk about her disastrous romantic past. Not when the entire team had practically growled and bared their teeth at Silas.
While it had felt wonderful to know the guys had her back, Miriam needed at least one person who didn’t look at her with a weird mix of curiosity and pity at Silas’ return. So Harris would not be getting the full story anytime soon.
Now, back at her desk, she rested her head in her hands and relived the brief, intimate moment between her and Silas. Harris had been gearing up for a total fanboy moment when Silas had wrapped his arms around her.
What had that idiot man been thinking? And why had she leaned into him when she should have sprinted in the opposite direction? She was sure it was partly because of the delicious mix of pine and sweat and man that had hit her when he pulled her close. With it, brought a rush of happy memories that made Miriam’s heart warm for the briefest of moments.
But then came the memories of heartache, and she’d pushed him away.
Had it been a pity hug? Something merely platonic?
She didn’t want to know, so she’d made the split-second decision to put a wall up. Instead of opening herself up for more heartache at the hands of Silas Jenkins, she was going to pour herself into her work and be the best community outreach manager that she could be. She loved this job too much to let an unexpected ex ruin it for her.
Ready to get to work, she scanned her well-worn list of corporate sponsors and tried to piece together events that people would want to attend. The plan was to use a three-fold attack that had worked well in previous years: a location, a caterer, and players.
Her brain turned over ideas for an event.
If she had it at The Sports Emporium, the local sporting goods store, she would be able to reach out to their customers, who were most likely sports fans. She could talk to them and ask if they’d ever been to a game. If not, Miriam would invite them. She’d bring along a small stack of BOGO vouchers that were good for any game in the upcoming season to sweeten the deal.
Next, she would ask the local bakery if they would whip up some cookies or cupcakes with the Storm’s colors—green and black—on them. People who were looking for a quick snack could stop by and grab one, giving Miriam yet another opportunity to talk to future fans.
Then the final touch would be having some of the players come out to sign autographs. This would bring out the loyal fans who wanted to rub shoulders with some of their favorite players. They would already know about the Storm, so Miriam wouldn’t have to try to sell to them. But they might linger and buy something from the store or pick up a cupcake and a business card for the bakery.
It was win-win-win and one of Miriam’s favorite parts of the job.
She loved trying to figure out which sponsors would pair together well, and how to get the most out of every event for all the parties involved. But she needed a location before she could plan out the rest of it.
Miriam looked up the store manager for the sporting goods store—already programmed in her phone—and called him to see if they could schedule an event before the season officially started in just a few short weeks. Miriam leaned back in her chair and tapped a pen against her thigh as the phone rang.
“Thanks for calling The Sports Emporium. This is Joe.”
Miriam’s shoulders relaxed when she heard the manager’s voice. “Hey, Joe. It’s Miriam from the Storm office.”
“How are you?” His voice was cheery. “Getting ready for the season?”
Miriam’s frantic pen tapping stilled, and she sat up in her chair. “That’s actually why I called. Have a few minutes?”
“What’s up?”
Miriam launched right into the upcoming season and asked whether or not she could count on him to host a player meet and greet sometime soon. She held her breath as she
